The Twin Rivers CCI4*-S marks Qualifier 9 of the US Equestrian Open of Eventing. It also marks a new frontier for Tamie Smith and the first 2025 international for one of James Alliston's rising stars.

Last weekend, Boyd Martin gained 130 Series points in a single qualifier to jump to second on the leaderboard. Both Tamie and James, with multiple entries, can likewise make gains this weekend. 

Tamie Crosses a Threshold

About 18 years ago, Tamie Smith faced her first ever CCI4*-S event. Since then, she has started a total of 100 competitions at the level and has become the unofficial West Coast ambassador in the world of eventing. 

The path to World silver medals (Pratoni 2022 team) and five-star victories (Kentucky 2023) is paved, largely, with CCI4*-S runs. And Tamie has become one of the USA's best at the level.

She has won 12 of her 100 CCI4*-S appearances. And, even more telling, she has produced two of the USA's best CCI4*-S performances on record according to the EquiRatings High Performance Rating (which measures not just scores and placings but also all the other factors that make an event difficult to win).

Tamie Smith & Kynan who she rides this week. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Tamie is also one of just five US riders to register five or more sub-30 scores at the CCI4*-S level since 2008.

And, at 4:48 pm PT on Thursday, Tamie will trot down center line on Kynan. It will be her 101st CCI4*-S start. Shortly after, Lillet 3 will be her 102nd.

Onward and upward to 200.

Keep an Eye on Karma

Another West Coast stalwart, James Alliston, is Mr. Reliable at Twin Rivers. He’s won the last four CCI4*-S events here — and just to show off, he did it on four different horses. This weekend, he brings forward four entries, including one of his most exciting prospects: Karma.

Karma is one to keep an eye on for the future. She hasn’t run internationally since last summer, when she and James crossed the Atlantic to take on the CHIO Aachen Nations Cup, one of the most prestigious competitions in the world. There in Germany, Karma and James didn’t just hold their own – they finished as the highest-placed US combination, ninth out of 45 starters. And that was in a field stacked with German athletes fighting for Olympic selection and other would-be Paris Olympians. It was a performance that helped Team USA secure the Nations Cup silver medal.

James Alliston & Karma.

Karma has so far contested 10 internationals and aside from one early hiccup — a cross-country elimination on her very first international start — she has been on a roll:

• She’s picked up Elo points in all nine subsequent international appearances, a sign of continual improvement and consistency.

• She has knocked only one rail across all nine international show jumping rounds.

• She made her five-star debut at Kentucky last year where she finished 12^th by adding only time penalties to her dressage score.

• She hasn’t had a single XC jumping fault in any of those nine runnings, including a clear on that five-star debut.

So on Saturday, James and Karma be aiming for ten clear XC rounds in a row.

Or will they?

The pair are also entered for the Kentucky Three-Day CCI5* later this month. So it wouldn’t be a surprise if James decides to withdraw the mare before cross-country. We’ll find out soon enough — but whether or not she runs, this is a pair with positive momentum heading into their 2025 season.

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